Kissing Corpses
by ANBUFury
Summary: Roxy is a college student with a bit of a problem. Calliope, a high school senior with a long past comes to Rose and Roxy's home for therapy, it was only by chance the two would meet. It was just coincidence that Calliope is the journalist that Roxy has the up-most admiration for.


I don't own Homestuck

Trigger Tag: #Fowl Language/Cursing #Substance Abuse #Suicide

* * *

Face down, Roxy Lalonde was face down in her desk on a Monday morning. Go figure. Dirk Strider, her closest friend and usual deterrent from the bottle snorted out of annoyed amusement. "Really?"

He watched her small body tense and then relax with a noisy exhale. "Not now Strider, not now."

"How does Rose even put up with you?" His tone was a bit harsher than he'd intended, but he already said it.

From under the desk a pain hand reached up and took hold of flippy blonde hair. "What part of 'not now' did you _not_ understand?" She whined, even stomping her feet to add to the tantrum. "Yes I am hung over. Yes, I know today is Monday and that last night was Sunday. As for how my sister deals with me I have no clue. There happy?"

"Satisfied at best." The poker-faced male shrugged his shoulders sitting down in front of his long time friend. Roxy could hear him pull out the bottle of pain reliever and place it on her desk. A bottle of water soon fallowed. "Still I can believe she hasn't pulled out the chains and belted you down to a chair for a therapy session."

"Sis and Kanaya won't touch my think pan." Roxy paused to slip a white powder pill between her dark lips and take a swig of water. "I'm a conflict of interest. Meaning they have their opinions already, there fore they are bias and wouldn't be able to properly solve any issues... If there were any to begin with."

"Rox, Its Monday morning and your hung over from a party. A party I warned you not to go to because you would end up like this." Dirks words were firm, orange eyes glaring over ironic shades.

With a pout Roxy sight, "If I promise that next weekend I'll stay home and not do anything stupid," She sat up straight pulling out her own note book and text book, "Will you stop with the silent judging?"

"Whatever." Roxy kicked his desk and then cursed the pain she felt in her foot. Class began a few short minutes later, it was a simple basic college programing coding class, and in all honesty the most fun she got out of it was trolling the tall lanky lisping male name Sollux.

They were both hackers, both good at coding, and both always trying to out do the other for the best in class spotlight. Granted with is background in robotics Dirk was not far behind either of them. Today was a perfect day for trolling once that pain medication had kicked in because Roxy also had something to add to her 'really I don't need this class' air she always had about her the moment the odd eyed male entered the room.

Twice a month the small cities paper would have a journal entry, now it wasn't anything to sweet and happy, in fact it was more of depressing, because this journal entry was from a girl known best by her pen name initials as UU. These entries were her survival story about making it through cancer, an abusive family , and going through high school life.

"_-I am not afraid of dying, I never was. YoU woUldn't Understand if yoU yoUr self hadn't been the one who's been in and oUt of the hospital sense yoU were small. Growing Up behind those white walls its easier to accept the final sentence we all have coming oUr way. _

_I apologize, I know this week is sUch a downer, bUt this has been something people have been asking me so mUch lately and I jUst thoUght I woUld take a moment to clear that Up. Granted as of now I am still in the clear for remission. I know next week will be better, I look forward to it.-"_

The article went of from there of course, but Roxy was slapped on the head by a pack of papers. "Still reading that morbid series about the cancer chick?"

"Yes and its not morbid, its actually up lifting." She defended. "Going through all of that an still being happy just to be alive and wanting to still be alive, that takes a lot..."

Dirk's expression was blank, well blanker than it always was when he turned back around and Roxy passed along the papers. Her eyes fell back to the passage and she read it over once again, wishing to her self to actually meet the mysterious UU in person.

* * *

The Lalonde house hold was small and quaint at best, its build early nineteen twenties in design. The outside was a simple white with black shutters, kept in the most pristine of conditions. Currently the owner of the house turned therapist office/dressmaker's shop/ library was none other then Rose Lalonde her self. The elder sister of the previously mentioned Roxy, however she'd been the tipsy dame's legal guardian for the past five years after their mother's untimely passing. The dressmaker huffed trying yet again to make sense of their office arrangements forcing the bolt of indigo fabric back into the already over crowded closet in the office's corner.

"Kanaya," Rose began, "Kanaya." She repeated.

"Just a moment. This time I think I-"

There was a thud and Rose shook her head, "Its not going to fit. For goodness sake's I told you already, its only Calliope, she doesn't mind a few misplaced things here or there."

"Well I do." Kanaya again huffed in the direction of the pesky fabric. "Could I move that stack of your old writing? Just a smidge, I promise not to look into it aga-"

"No." The fashionable black haired female could already see the crimson blush across her lover's face. "If it is that big of a deal then I'll move it...Into the fire pit."

Kanaya spoke to counter her girlfriend's words, but the door bell objected. Leaving her again fuming and her heels clacking over to open the front door. "Calliope. Its nice to see you as always."

"Good afternoon Ma'am." The teen smiled brightly stepping in and pulling off her knee high red boots, reveling the usual pair of gray stockings. "How are ya?"

"Very well, just a little flustered." Kanaya took notice of a hair that had fallen out of place during her endeavor with the material. Gliding over to the mirror she quickly fixed her hair. "I hate indigo...I hate it with a bloody passion."

Calliope let out a musical laugh. "Well it can't be all that bad, Rose in her office?"

"Yes she is." Kanaya smiled turning to the girl and then back to her mirror to try and fix the blasted strand.

When Calliope entered the office she always felt the need to smile, it was nice. Not to professional and scary like the hospitals always made their offices, this one was warm and welcoming. That and it never stayed the same. Like Rose and Kanaya were always rearranging the furniture to try and accommodate their own needs for the space.

"Your looking very well." Rose stated looking up from her desk, "That article was very well written again, per-usual."

"Thank you, i-is your sister still reading it?"

"If she hadn't been so hung over this morning, or any morning, I'm sure she would have tackled me for the paper." Calliope sat down in the nice comfy arm chair, while Rose took her own place. "Lets get started."

"Right."

"What would you like to talk about today Calliope." Rose pulled out the note book (gray upon Calliope's request) and positioned her pen. The teenager scratched at her white locks, biting her lip. "Is this going to be one of those sessions?"

"No, no. I just... Well... You know next week, the fifteenth is the, the anniversary of when my brother..." She swallowed rather hard, trying to force a painful lump back down. "When he committed suicide. So I guess, more or less that feeling of guilt is getting a bit stronger again."

Rose scribbled down something and leaned back. "Yes. Yes it is. Calliope, don't let all the progress you've made be for naught, you know very well it wasn't your own hand that slit the vein, and it was not you who told him to."

"I know, but still. If I'd been-"

"If you'd been healthy, strength has nothing to do with one's health. Your brother was a patient of mine before you for his sever bi-polar disorder and violent tendencies. For me to say I did not see it coming would be a lie."

Calliope shifted in her seat. "I suppose your right..."

"I am the therapist here." A light round of laughter and they continued on. The subject of her brother forgotten in the questions and answers.

Roxy had been freed from the boring community college and began her walk home a few short moments ago, Dirk had chose to stay after, something about meeting an old friend of his for coffee. Usually he'd join her for dinner and they'd do a few hours of studying until late in the night. The walk home was odd with out him.

None the less she'd made it and opened up the front door, "I'm home!"

Kanaya leaned in from the kitchen, visibly 'hushing' Roxy with a glare and nodding in the direction of Rose's office. The young Lalonde shrugged her shoulders and joined Kanaya in the kitchen, were dinner was already under way. "Where's D. Strider?" She asked, trying her best to mock a cool kids tone of voice.

The attempt only made Roxy laugh. "Of meeting his little English friend, Jake I think...So who's Sis got in there?"

"Roxy, you know the rules. I nor Rose can tell you any thing about the patients your sister loo-"

"Just a name Kan, that's all I want is a name."

Annoyed she hadn't been allowed to finish her sentence Kanaya huffed, something she'd been doing all day. "Calliope."

"Really, people still name their kids that..." Roxy snatched a grape from the bowl on the counter, chewing on it rather noisily, Kanaya's shoulders tensed at the sounds, "Pretty name though. Calliope."

"Yes?"

They both turned to see Rose and the latter standing in the door way to the kitchen. "Roxy, this is Calliope." Roxy reached out a hand picking up another grape and munching on it whilst still watching the white haired girl as she step forward taking the pail hand. Kanaya took the moment to steal the metal bowl and move it out of the flighty broad's reach. "Where's Dirk, not joining us for dinner for once?"

"Coffee with what I'm going to just say is his boyfriend," Calliope and Roxy both gave each others hands a quick shake and let go, "So hi, nice to meet you Calli."

"I-I actually prefer Calliope...I-If you don't mind." Roxy watched her adjust her bangs back over her vivid green eyes.

"That's cool. So you stayin' for dinner in Dirk's place?"

"What?"

"Yes, why not." Kanaya smiled from the sink. "Your never here long enough for us to really get to enjoy your presence, what could it hurt?"

"Oh nothing really just making her a confli-"

"Don't listen to Rose if you want to stay, then please stay. You can tell Roxy about your writing more."

Kanaya spoke up over Rose's professionalism.

"Writing? " Roxy looked back to Calliope. "No offense, but she's like...What fifteen?"

"None taken, but I am actually eighteen." The white haired dame gave with a laugh.

"Roxy, Calliope writes the articles that you enjoy, she's uranianUmbra."

"Your UU?" Roxy had nearly jumped the counter to reach the younger of the two. Rose stepped out of the way and strolled over to Kanaya. Watching her sister's face light up with something other than inebriation. Calliope looked nervous while trying to keep up with the questions and mismatched conversation spewing from Roxy.

"You two, go sit down, Rose and I will have dinner out in a moment."

They both nodded and Calliope allowed Roxy to lead her to dinning room once the two of them were out of ear shot Rose turned on Kanaya. "You, why would you tell her to stay for dinner? You know that could comprise the the-"

"Did you not notice the excitement on Roxy's face and for once it was not over one of her friends inviting her out to a party?" Kanaya pointed out. "It wasn't for naught, I was trying to get her to expand her social horizons to include someone that will not feed her negative habits." Rose stared at her lover, preparing her agreeing statement before Kanaya interjected. "For just a while Rose, be a sister, not a therapist. It would do _you_ some good."

Rose huffed and nodded knowing Kanaya had a fully valid point, and when dinner was finished and brought out to the small dining room the point was only made clearer by the fact that not only was Calliope listening to the conversation and answering Roxy's questions, but she was actually very much involved with expressing her self, much more then she'd been with Rose during her sessions.

A jade smile flashed over to Rose. "What is it with you Lalond's and having some kind of magical power over people to get them to come out of their shells?"

Rose smiled, letting her inner therapist peak out and make a mental note of putting this development down in her notebook on Calliope.


End file.
